Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators in South Dakota
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$40,274
after federal, FICA and South Dakota tax
Tax takes
$7,136
15.1% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$45,716
South Dakota costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in South Dakota — roughly, since only five points along the band are published.
One filer, standard deduction, no dependants and nothing paid in before tax — the same household the rest of this page uses, so the comparison holds. City and school-district income taxes are not included.
Median here
$47,410
Kept after tax
$40,274
Worth in national money
$45,716
State rank
26
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Middling, nationally. South Dakota pays this job around $47,410 at the midpoint, 26 of 51 states. The interesting numbers on this page are the two below it.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 457 occupations South Dakota reports figures for, this is number 295.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $47,410 you keep $40,274 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $45,716 at national prices. Averages run higher here, $48,730, since top earners drag the number up.
- For industrial truck and tractor operators the South Dakota median is $47,410, ranking 26 of 51 states reporting. Mid-band nominal positions are the ones most frequently reordered by the adjustments, because no large wage premium exists to absorb a state's tax or price level.
- In South Dakota's occupational distribution, industrial truck and tractor operators sits at 295 of 457 — neither quartile. This local position is what a resident compares against, and it is determined by the state's own labor market rather than by national patterns for this occupation.
- Retained pay in South Dakota is $40,274 after the full tax stack, from $47,410. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $45,716 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $48,730 exceeds the median, so the upper tail is doing the work.
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Pay band: Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $37,780 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $47,410 |
| Top tenth earn over | $61,080 |
| This salary | $47,410 |
Positions between the published tenth, quarter, half, three-quarter and ninetieth points are estimated by straight line.
The same pay, somewhere else
The state median for this job
| Take-home in South Dakota | $40,274 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $40,274 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$4,272 |
The raise and the real gain point in opposite directions here.
State income tax and state price levels only. No city income tax, and no housing market.
What you would need there
The state median for this job
| To match take-home only | $47,410 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$5,166 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 88 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $47,410 as a midpoint for South Dakota, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $37,780 and the ninetieth is $61,080 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- In South Dakota the take-home figure of $40,274, from $47,410, assumes one filer, no dependants, and nothing paid into a pension before tax. Each of those lowers the bill, so treat it as the plain case. City and school-district income taxes are not included either, and in a few states those are real money. It ranks 295 of 457 occupations here.
- One number stands for prices across all of South Dakota, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $45,716, the adjusted value of that $47,410 median, as a way to compare states fairly, not as a quote for any particular place. The two datasets are also from different years. This job sits at 295 of 457 in the state.
- The South Dakota median of $47,410 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $37,780 to $61,080. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- Take-home for South Dakota is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $40,274 from $47,410. Each omitted item reduces taxable income, so the figure is a lower bound on retained pay for this household shape. Municipal and school-district income taxes are excluded, which understates the burden materially in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Maryland. The occupation ranks 295 of 457 locally.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for South Dakota, so $45,716 — the adjusted value of that $47,410 median — establishes comparability between states rather than accuracy within one. The wage and parity series are dated independently, each following its own publication cycle, and neither is projected forward. This occupation sits at 295 of 457 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $37,780 at the bottom tenth to $61,080 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. South Dakota is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $45,716 in national terms.
Is most of this wage taxed away?
Most of it arrives. $40,274 lands after tax, since there is no state income tax on wages here — though the federal floor is identical in every state.
Can I compare this job across every state?
Yes for this one. Pay is published in all 51 jurisdictions, so a state-to-state comparison here rests on the same survey everywhere rather than on a patchwork.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($37,780 to $61,080) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to South Dakota rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
South Dakota's regional price parity is at or below the national average, so nominal wages understate purchasing power. Take-home deflated by the state price level is $45,716 in national-average terms. The adjustment uses an all-items index and does not isolate housing.
Why is the take-home ratio comparatively high in this state?
South Dakota levies no personal income tax on wages, so take-home of $40,274 reflects the federal layer and FICA alone. Federal income tax and FICA are unchanged; states without a wage income tax generally recover revenue through consumption and property bases instead.
Is this occupation's state coverage complete?
State-level estimates are published for all 51 jurisdictions for this occupation, so cross-state comparison is not confounded by suppression. ⚠️ Estimates remain survey-based and carry sampling error; small differences between adjacent states should not be over-read.